By Marcy Shortuse
Photos by Christine Cunningham & Marcy Shortuse
Florida has a varied and unique history, and the Bean
Depot Cafe & Museum in El Jobean is one of those
places where history is actually tangible. It’s not easy
to see from the road, and if you don’t see the small sign
along the road on 776, you might never know it was
there. Over the years the spot has served as a railroad
depot, a general store, a bait and tackle shop, and most
recently, a small restaurant and museum.
The facade is overgrown and faded, with rambling old
oaks towering above the old structure. Huge fi cus trees
hold strange objects within their twisted trunks -
everything from a worn fl ip fl op, to a hairband, to a
plastic fi sh. One tree contains a rusted bicycle within its
trunk system, having become part of the tree years ago.
These are things that time forgot, things that were found
in the road, or in a ditch, or were left by an absent-
minded patron. At some point they ceased to be lostand
found things, and became part of the decor.